Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1887-03-11
Congressman stewart ON the Depend
ent Pension Bill Veto.

Following is a letter which ex-Gov. Stew
art, Member of Congress from the First
district addressed TO the editor of the Bur
lington Free Press ON the Presidents veto
of the dependent pension bill. The letter
was called out by some remarks favorable
to the veto made by the Free Press. There
is difference of opinion about the exped-
iency of the vetoed bill among Republicans
who are warm friends of the soldiers, and
among the old soldiers themselves, but Mr..
Stewards letter sets some features of the
veto in new light and is worth putting on
record for this reason
mo bill was ever more grossly misrep
resented by the press of the country, and
the criticisms of the President are hyper
critical and dictated by "A spirit of hostility
to the policy of further extension of the
pension list, which he has repeatedly shown
in vetoes of most meritorious cases. I'm
der the bill total disability is u prerequisite
10 enjoyment of its provisions. No one at
tempted to answer or could answer the
argument ON that point, of Matson, the
chairman of the committee. Then as t.
! the number of beneiiciaries, the estimate of
| the committee was based not upon onjeC
ture, but upon carefully gathered and pre-
else statistics, furnished by the pension bu
reau, whereby the wild conjectures Of the
President and the papers who joined i'll the
hue and cry, are shown to have no other
foundation than the varying fancies of the
DIRECTORS. The personal influence of the eX
ecutive was brought to bear upon the Dem
ocrats of the House, by which enough votes
were changed to defeat the bill As it was
II 1 II. i.
can vote for it. Every man from the
South, save Woolford of Kentucky voted
against it, while every southern member
voted for the Mexican service pension bill
far more obnoxious to all the executive
criticisms than this one, as you will see by
comparison Now as to the result here
The entire pension legislation is stopped
The Democrats refused to give us las
night for consideration of pension bills wv,
have had Friday nights regularity and the
committee refuse to meet again or to repor
upon any vetoed bill now i'll committees
for the reason as one of the Democrats
members said today, that the Democrats
vote will defeat any bill however meritori
GUS which has failed to receive an execu
tive sanction and the committee decline t,
antagonize the President any further.
, assure you that the spirit which prompt
this action now is at bottom inspired by tn
confederates and the free traders. Tn
commercial press is hostile to the Who'll
1 pension policy. The rich who can best al
e. ford to be taxed, are opposed.
For myself do not hesitate to say tina
it is the duty of the country now to tax
care of honorably discharged soldiers who's
disability is total, who are destitute {
Re property and whose disability is not the IT
. suit of vicious habits Such is the bill, an
{ that is all there is of it. The solid South
n against it, The commercial and moneye
- men of the country are against it, to som
g extent at least The Democratic party al
Il against it, The mugwumps are against it
II but believe the great heart of the Mort
1t beats reponsively to this just call. III
If scribblers have said that this was prompte
by and was the work of pension agent
> which is false as the other criticisms on IL
70 bill. Every member of the pension con
~ mittee on both sides stamps it lie III
adulterated 1t was the work of the cot
mittee, in line with executive recomme
=, daton as to general policy, and prompt,
!" solely by desire to do justice to deser
al ing class of the nations defenders in
I'd hour of peril. Yours truly,
NJ j w Stew ART